[ASTRID REESE]
London, England

★ ★ ★

Astrid debated whether to pick up the phone, let it go to voicemail on its own, or decline the call herself. If she wanted him to think she was easy going with no interest in prolonging his heartfelt apology, she should go with option number one. If she wanted him to think she was oh so busy without a second to spare him, while also choosing to ignore him but without being direct about it, she should go with option number two. However, if she wanted him to think she was shattered yet burning red from anger after his lack of appearance for their date, she should go with option number three.

Number three seemed to be the most inviting. Purely because Astrid thought herself to be a sucker for drama, and the other person gravelling at her feet for forgiveness. To look past this one mistake, they promise never to repeat again. Either that, or she watched too many shows and films, and read too many romantic novels, therefore completely altering her touch with reality.

"Are you gonna pick it up or just stare at it?" Sofia, chewing on her pasta that the waiter brought out not too long ago, called her out eventually, grabbing her attention which she didn't even realise she focused on the screen of her phone. "In his defence, he is a surgeon and those people are extremely busy."

"So, what?" Astrid laughed while she twisted her fork into the pesto pasta she decided on. After the volume was turned off on the device, it continued to vibrate as the man kept the call on. "Are you telling me I should appreciate his time more? The effort he puts into calling me days after he stood me up?"

"Hey, I'm not the bad guy here," putting one hand in the air, Sofia defended herself then went back to minding her own business. As the vibration of the device continued on, Sofia couldn't help the sigh leaving her lungs, nodding her head towards it. "But that's getting annoying, so—," then the phone stopped ringing, and she said, "—nevermind."

Option number two, it was. Oh, so busy without a second to spare him, while also choosing to ignore him but without being direct about it.

Was it wrong to make him work for it? Could Astrid afford making him work for it? She had no idea if her claws were dipped deep enough or if they would slip out at the first bump in the road. In theory, her aim was to get involved with him so that eventually, he takes her home and she can face Derek. Making the surgeon work for it, was not.

Now that she was living through this—and she had no idea how the hell it all worked out so well so far—the playing field has changed drastically. She realised there are feelings involved here, and that Harry Styles is a real person. Someone with his own set of challenges, baggage, feelings, time, etcetera. It completely blew up in her face but she should've expected it.

But because she turned a blind eye, it flew over her head.

This insane idea came about when she was ridiculously hung up on the truth of what had happened. Astrid lacked any logical thinking but it became such a constant, and somewhat secure, plan in her head that she couldn't ignore it. She couldn't move on and forget. She had to bring it to life because this was how she chose to cope.

Completely drowned in her own head, the vibrating sensation shook through their table again.

A couple of seconds to collect herself were enough. Astrid inhaled enough fresh air to keep her lungs satisfied, then she reached for the phone and accepted the call. "Hello?"

"Astrid—hi," Harry's voice was filled with surprise, kind of like he didn't expect this call to get through to her. The moment he opened his mouth, Astrid's heart jumped up into her throat and she felt confused as to why her organ reacted so fast. "Listen," he sighed, continuing his speech when Astrid stayed quiet, giving him the freedom to get across what he had planned. "I want to apologise for the other night. I stood you up. I can only imagine how you're feeling, especially considering that I left it so late to call you about it."

Astrid sighed, then hummed a quiet, "Mmm," as she found herself speechless. She's heard many half assed apologies before and Harry's was not one of them. The surgeon sounded sincere, like he truly felt ashamed and upset about what had happened. She imagined Harry's surprise must've felt like this when she picked up the phone. Clearly, Astrid's idea of men apologising, in her past and current life, was fucked.

"I understand if you'll say no, given how we left things at the bar, then the way I never showed, but I want to make it up to you by seeing you tonight," and again, there came the shock. Shaking her core. Leaving her knees weak. Heart racing like she just finished drinking a large can of RedBull. "I have a friend working at the restaurant I planned on taking you to, so I could push the reservation to—well, to whenever you'll agree to come on a date with me. What do you think?"

"Harry, sorry, could you just hold on? I have a client to see out. One sec," Astrid answered as she simultaneously pulled the phone from her ear and clicked on the mute button. All through the one-sided conversation, Sofia watched her best friend with widened eyes, ready for anything.

That's why she was able to immediately jump on Reese and ask, "What the hell was that? You don't have a client—,"

"He apologised and wants to take me out tonight. What do I do?"

"Are you kidding me?" Sofia almost screamed at her in disbelief while Astrid stared at her like a deer in the headlights. "You say, yes, of course! Come pick me up!"

"Right..."

"Unless you don't want to go out with him?"

"I do."

"I don't see what the issue is, then," Sofia shrugged. "If you want to know why he never showed, you can ask him. He might tell you. He might not. One thing's for sure—he wants to see you. Tonight."

"True," she cried, shoulders pushed forward but still sagging, back bent.

"Do you want to see him?"

"Annoyingly enough, I do," she sighed. "So bad."

Sofia didn't need to say anything more. She simply shrugged like her job there was done and Astrid picked up her phone again. Once unmuted, she spoke. "You there?"

"Hi. Here," Harry responded immediately. He sounded like he smiled, and Astrid couldn't help but allow her own lips to curl upwards.

"Okay..." she started. Then sighed, like she was preparing herself to break down his hopes of seeing her. Instead, she said, "I need to know why you stood me up."

"Oh..." he breathed, taken aback by how candid she was. "Honestly? It was work. There was an accident with a couple of head traumas and not enough of us to cover everything. In those moments, the only thing on my mind is getting to those patients and helping them before their injuries worsen. I didn't leave the hospital until the following day, and even then, it was late afternoon. I barely made it home alive."

"I assumed it would be work."

"Yeah, it was," he confirmed again. "I would've called you in any other situation, but when I'm in there with multiple patients and hour-long surgeries, my mind's trained to focus on helping whoever's on my table."

"Of course," she responded. "I get it."

"Thank you," he sighed, almost like he was relieved that Astrid knew how to be an empathic human. She thought herself to be, so it came naturally to her to be understanding. Though, sometimes, she was a little too understanding. "So... can I take you out tonight? This time I will make sure to turn up."

"Where are you planning on taking me?"

"It was meant to be a surprise," he chuckled.

"Humour me," she said. Begged. She needed to know.

"LaRue's."

"Oh... I—wow," Astrid started to chuckle quietly, shock setting in as she realised her meal would be a glass of water tonight. LaRue's was one of those high-end restaurants where it's impossible to get a table booked because it's always busy. Celebrities walk in and out of those doors like they own the place, selling it even more with their appearance even though its reputation already makes up for all the marketing they could ever need.

"Is that a problem? Would you like to go elsewhere?" Harry sounded like he was concerned for a moment, maybe even doubted his plan as he let Astrid's reaction sit between them.

"Erm... well, you see," she chuckled lightly and shifted in her seat, feeling a lot more awkward than she thought she could when she accepted the phone call. This was not how she imagined the conversation to fold out. "Okay. I'm gonna be honest. I don't know if I can afford that place."

"I was under the impression that since I asked you out, I would be the one to take care of everything," he mentioned calmly. To him, that must've made sense. To Astrid, it sounded like hell. The thought of someone spending so much money on her like that, especially if they don't know each other, drove her crazy. She started to overthink everything. She itched to get off of the phone and search up the menu to explore her options, to pick out the least expensive meal, to practice how she would order.

It was beginning to overwhelm her. Anxiously peeling back the skin on the side of her thumb, she managed to push back far enough to feel a little jolt of pain rush through her, hissing in an instant. That woke her from the madness of her mind just in time.

"But if you don't feel comfortable with that, please, let me know," Harry said when he received no word from her. "We can plan something else if you'd like."

"I would love to go there with you. I've heard some great things," she told him so when it came to letting him down, it wouldn't be so bad. Astrid noticed her breathing becoming more rapid and a wave of hot flush rushed through her. At that point, she already had her chair pushed back in case she needed to leave the restaurant for some fresh air. "I just—I'm not sure if I can let you pay for everything."

"Astrid, I hear you," he let her know like he could sense her panic. It was strange how easily he had done that, though the fact that Astrid's heart slowed down little by little at the sound of his voice was somehow a lot stranger. Constantly being so aware of everything around her, purely for her own sanity, it made sense that she began to question whether Sofia was right. Was she really developing true feelings towards Harry? "I would love to take you there, and it sounds like you'd love to go there. But if you are not happy with the money side of things, I don't want you to force yourself."

"Can I—well, would it be possible for me to think on it?" she wondered as embarrassment filled her. She hated doing this. Why couldn't she just say yes? He didn't mind. He wanted to take her there. But all she could think about was would she ever repay him? Even if this was a date, the thought of him paying all that money for a meal for her was too much.

"Yes. Of course," he responded right away, and again, somehow perfectly helping in bringing some calmness to Astrid's loud thoughts. Maybe the fact that he was a doctor helped, she thought, but he didn't let her wonder for too long. "Technically, I have today off so unless there's something urgent, I'm free for the rest of the day. Maybe I could pick you up from your work?"

"You'd do that?" she asked back, chuckling like a shy school girl.

"Why not?" he questioned with the quietest yet softest little laugh Astrid ever heard. Did he wake up not too long ago? Considering what he had shared about his last shift, it would've made sense for him to lounge in bed for as long as he could. Dream filled eyes and sleepy curls, pillow imprinted cheeks and warm skin. For a second, she was sure his bed sheets were white, and he had to have a King's sized bed with the fluffiest pillows and most comfortable, heaviest duvet. Feeling the softness of it against her skin, her daydreaming was interrupted when he added, "You could let me know what you decided regarding our date."

"Alright," she chose to say quickly, much more collected now than all throughout the conversation. She managed to go through a rollercoaster of emotions in less than five minutes. "Okay. I'll text you the address and I'll see you at five?"

"Sounds wonderful," he responded with a smile shining through. Astrid was sure. She could hear it. And it made her heart dance like its life depended on the movements. It soared like an eagle on a rainy day, free and the happiest.

"Mm-hmm," she hummed.

As if Harry could see into the future, he said his goodbyes and spared the conversation from crashing into awkwardness. When it sounded like the line had been cut, and Astrid no longer heard his words or his breathing, she pulled the phone from her ear, leaving her faced with her home screen.

"Well?" Sofia interrupted her chance of compiling everything that happened. Astrid's brain couldn't process the conversation properly but maybe it was for the better. Her excitement shot through the roof as her eyes travelled up to meet her best friend's, and she started laughing. "Oh my god. You are fucked," Sofia laughed with her, covering her mouth and nose as she continued to look at Astrid. "Completely and utterly fucked. Aren't you?"

"He's picking me up from work, so I have until five to decide whether I'll let him take me out or not."

"Of course, you will!" she said enthusiastically, then her eyebrows knitted and voice dropped at the smallest bit of concern flashing through Reese's eyes. "You will, won't you?"

The question caused Astrid's excitement to deflate like someone took a needle and popped a perfectly round balloon without any warning. She sighed, and said, "Sofia, it's so expensive."

"So?"

"So..."

"Baby, you gotta do it," she chuckled. "You just have to do it."

"Convince me," Astrid asked.

"For one, this is the dream," Sofia started. Astrid hummed, head nodding to the side as she picked up her glass of water and took a sip. "A hot, world-class, rich surgeon wants to take you out to—where is he taking you, again?"

"LaRue's."

"Holy shit," she gasped. Eyes wide. "Yes. You are going with him. Are you crazy? If you say no, I'll swap places with you."

"I know you would," Astrid rolled her eyes.

"No, seriously," she put one hand on her heart, the other in the air. "The number of times we spoke about that place and the kind of people that go there—you'd be insane to decline the date just because of how expensive it is."

"I know but I feel so weird because he said he'll take care of everything and when I think about the prices and—,"

"Don't think about the prices, then," Sofia said immediately, ending her thought process with a snap of her finger. "Don't think about it because he said he'll take care of everything, right? All you have to do is doll yourself up—which I will gladly do for you—and enjoy spending some time with this man, in a restaurant that you'll never set foot into again."

"Maybe... but it's just—I don't know. You know I've never enjoyed spending a lot of money like that."

"That's a lie," Sofia scoffed, judging Astrid and she knew it was all for the right reasons. She liked spending money, yes. But it came with immense amount of guilt. Like she didn't deserve to spend that—her own—money. And how was she going to replace that money? Even though she had a full-time job with great pay. In her mind, whatever she spent, no matter what she spent it on, was money she will never get back. It's almost like she was terrified of someone telling her off for it, even when she had done it to satisfy her own needs from time to time. "But you shouldn't even worry about this. You're not losing anything."

"Ugh," was all she could say. The only way she could react. "Let me sit with this until he comes."

★ ★ ★

She did sit with it.

In fact, she put off all of her work—only after she made sure to plan everything out so she could still remain up to date when catching up later—and focused on the most important matter at hand. Now presented in a Power Point presentation.

Well, not a properly completed one. Astrid only needed a blank page to get rid of everything that occupied her mind, and the only place she felt it appropriate to put was on a digital slide. Making a simple web chart, she put everything she felt to be important on there. Main points, bullet points. Good, bad, positive, negative. She stared at it for what felt like hours, trying to decide if her mind could get over the biggest, and most annoying obstacle of all.

Then she closed off the presentation slide and went to the toilet. Astrid couldn't take it anymore, she needed to clear her mind, so taking a walk was her best option. There, as she stood in front of the sink and washed her hands, all she could do was stare at the reflection. Her mind completely blank, eyes unfocused as she lost touch with reality for a second or two.

"If I go, I might have a good time," she spoke to herself while shaking her hands off in the sink, then turned to the hand drier. "If I don't go, I might regret it," she continued, even though the loud noise of the machine kept her from hearing anything of what had left her mouth. Head tilted as the hot air blew the droplets off of her hands, Astrid exhaled loudly, lips apart until she stated chewing on the inside of her cheek.

Once the room became quiet again, she went back to the reflection of herself. There, she found herself with dishevelled hair and rosy cheeks. Pursing her lips, they looked bare so she pulled the lip gloss from her pocket and applied a nice layer. Popping her index finger in her mouth once the shiny cream filled in every little part, she pulled it out with a swift motion, that way she could avoid her lips sticking together when speaking.

Contemplating until she couldn't, it was better to get back to her office and get ready to leave. The time was 16:40. That gave her twenty minutes to get her shit together. Twenty minutes. Two times ten minutes. Four times five minutes. Then Harry would arrive so he could drive her home. Even though that meant she'd have to leave her car here then get an Uber in the morning to get to work. But that was fine. So fine.

Like Harry Styles. He was fine. More than fine, actually. It was hard for Astrid to find any negatives in him giving her a ride home. She would finally get to see his car, because believe it or not, she still didn't know what kind of vehicle he drove. The first time they met they got an Uber together. The second time they met Sofia had to Uber over to the bar so she could drive Astrid's car, along with her, home. And when they saw each other in Tesco, they did not leave together. This moment, this time, would solve all of her puzzles. Not that it was enough for her because she needed to be in the driver's seat.

So, she did what made the most sense. Opened Google and typed in: What cars do doctors drive UK. Then hit search. Presented with 265,000,000 results in one second, she found that the top three choices included Toyota—which was the most popular choice—, followed by Honda, then BMW coming in last. Seeing the last model listed, she immediately thought of how they could match, and some parts of her hoped that it would be the case. Mostly because she couldn't imagine Harry in anything but a luxurious car which was his fault since he decided on where to take her for their first date.

Oh...

It appeared as though Astrid shocked herself while standing up behind her desk, filling her bag with the laptop she brought, her water bottle, and other personal belongings she didn't want to leave for the night. Completely subconsciously, she made the decision to say yes to the date. Although she didn't realise how much pressure it really put on her at first, when she sat back down into her chair, legs stretched out, arms flat on the chair sides, and her back pressed into the furniture, she had to come to the conclusion with a relieved laugh that she was one: ridiculous, two: she managed to overthink the simplest thing in the world. Once again.

Tututututu tutu tutu tu tu tu tu. Tututututu tutu tutu tu tu tu tu.

There couldn't be anything more annoying than that ringtone. Although, knowing that Harry was calling her—the screen gave it away—made it a little more acceptable. When she greeted him with a little 'hi' like she had no idea why he would call, he was sure to let her know that whenever she is ready, he'll be waiting downstairs, sitting in a black car. Not very informative, she thought to herself.

The way she felt on edge all afternoon didn't leave her body. If anything, the moment she got in the lift, pressed the ground floor and the doors closed on her, she felt it intensify. Pain shot through her palms, her stomach felt like it dropped then tightened into a stupid knot. A lump formed in the back of her throat, and she tried to get rid of the feeling by biting down on her back teeth but it didn't help. It didn't help, because the moment the doors opened, she had to walk out and through the revolving doors. There, she lifted her hand to cover the bright street light. Winter was the worst with it going dark so soon.

"Where the fuck is this man..." she mumbled to herself as she walked towards the car park, hoping he would be there.

And then he flashed his lights at her.

And her jaw dropped.

Because that black car was no Toyota. Because that black car was no Honda. Because that black car was no BMW.

But because that black car was a bloody Aston Martin. One of the big ones. Astrid couldn't pinpoint the model but she was going to grill him about it until he gave in and told her. Being such a fanatic of cars like the one he owned was going to make her seem insane but she couldn't care. She has never sat in an Aston Martin before so the fact that Harry Styles was going to make one of her dreams come true felt so exciting.

Sucking back the drool that must've left her mouth at the sight of the beauty, she put a little extra hip into her walk over. Balancing her bag in the crook of her left arm, heels clicking against the asphalt. It was terrifyingly cold, her bones were chattering, her skin filled with goosebumps as she only wore a thin blazer and shirt.

Just before Astrid reached the car, Harry jumped out like there was a fire in there and he needed to save his life. Before he could've even managed to say his little, "Hi," the biggest grin spread across his face at the sight of Reese. She didn't know how to deal with that, and the car. Gorgeous-ness overload.

"Hello," Astrid managed to say, stepping to the side as Harry gently put his hand on her lower back to move her aside, then opened the passenger seat door for her. Immediately, the smell of leather mixing with seasalt and sandalwood hit her nose. It felt so gentle yet overpowering at the same time that she found herself hooked on it. Worse than any drug ever founded in the world. Especially because there stood Harry, with his own cologne, the very same one that Astrid owned. She praised herself for not using it that day because imagine if he finds out and thinks she only got it because of him.

Even if that was a stretch. Truthfully, she didn't want to appear like a weirdo.

After Astrid got in the car, legs packed in, blazer tucked so as to not close the door on it, Harry asked, "Good?" before receiving a little smile and nod from her, giving him the green light to close the door.

As she sat there in silence for a couple of seconds, she could explore the inside quickly. Brown eyes fanned over the interior, they found it was just as breath-takingly stunning as the outside. The seats were black, with red incisions in the middle and around the headrest, while the backs of the seats, the front compartment, the controller in the middle, and the sides of the main panel appeared in a deep, blood red colour. The seatbelt was a much duskier, toned down red. Turning her head to the door, she noticed the top and bottom parts were also blood red but the hand rest, and the handle on her left were against the same black as the front of the seats, the steering wheel, and the floors.

"All buckled and ready?" he asked her as soon as he sat inside, clicking his own seatbelt into place.

"Mm-hmm," she nodded, perhaps a little too enthusiastically but then she also didn't care. Astrid was having the time of her life in that car. As the vehicle started up then gently started gliding against the road, she had to hold herself back from reacting inappropriately. It felt so smooth and easy, and a lot scarier than her own car. This car was a beast, sitting on a much higher level than her car, which was closer to the asphalt.

"So, how was your day?" Harry tried to initiate a conversation while she geeked out. The screen in the middle lacked the map she imagined would be on there so as to get them to her place using the fastest route possible.

"It was okay," she ended up saying while cosying into the seat. It fit her back perfectly, in fact, she never wanted to leave his car. As he drove into the main road, they bumped into a red light and the car came to the most perfect stop. "Do you know where you're going?" Harry chuckled as soon as she asked the question. Kind of like he expected it. Nevertheless, it made Astrid smile and ask, "What?"

"Funnily enough, I know where you live," he said. "Where abouts, I should say."

"Really?" her voice dropped and filled with pure curiosity.

"You live near the new builts, don't you?"

"Yeah," she nodded. "I live in one."

"Oh, do you?" he wondered, his voice high pitched with happiness. "I used to live around the area when I was doing my training—they were building them around that time. Public transport routes are amazing from there."

"Oh, no," Astrid realised. "I live a little bit away from those new builts. You'll see."

"I suppose I will," Harry chuckled. "So—,"

"Can I just—,"

They both laughed. The fact that Astrid spoke just as he continued, made her cheeks burn so feverishly that she was sure it matched the interior of the vehicle.

"Go on," Harry encouraged her to speak as he turned right.

"Well, I was just going to ask about the car..."

"I'm all ears."

"Okay," she smiled, slotting her hands beneath her thighs. "Which model is this?"

"DBX. Electric."

"Oh, wow," she responded in awe, listening for the car to make a lot more noise but it never came. Just smoothness. Like butter. "It's gorgeous."

"Stunning, right?" Harry questioned excitedly, which made Astrid believe he didn't expect her to care about his car. Even though it was kind of like an elephant in the room with its size. And most certainly with its beauty. "What do you drive?"

"Guess!"

"Hmm," he started, glancing at her for a second. Just before the lights turned green. Astrid watched as he easily controlled the car, hands on the steering wheel. And they engulfed the entire thing, she was sure of it. He gripped onto them so perfectly, his veins were visible. Truth be told, she missed the way it wrapped around her throat that very first night, extremely gentle at first, then gradually firmer.

Okay. Stop.

"You're thinking too much about it," she said to him.

"Yeah?" he asked, stealing another side glance like he couldn't not look at her at any given chance. And that thought boosted her already healthy ego. Improved her posture, too. Astrid sat back up and stretched out her back, gently sliding her bag onto the floor by her feet. "Okay," he sighed. "Audi. A3."

"Nope."

"Damn it," he whispered, then let out a surprised, "Really?"

"I did think about it once upon a time," she admitted. "But no."

"Okay," he nodded, accepting defeat after his first attempt. "You're gonna have to tell me. I have no idea."

"BMW."

"No fucking way," Harry laughed, and Astrid had a feeling it was due to the reputation that the car came with. She has definitely received that reaction before when the topic of cars came about so it was nothing new to her. "Good to know."

"Is it?" she wondered, raising an eyebrow playfully while a satisfied smirk curled her lips.

"Oh, yeah," he chuckled with a little bit of smugness hiding there quietly. Astrid's mind making its own assumptions, she believed he now had a perfect image of the kind of person she was. Well, with consideration to their other interactions. And that felt kind of exciting. "It's why I know I'll be picking you up later tonight."

"You sound extremely confident."

"You give me reason to be," he shrugged with ease. "Plus, I have the rest of this drive to convince you."

And then she laughed. Because that was all she could do while the butterflies roared in her stomach. Her hands were sweating. There was a tick in her legs as she bounced her knees up and down. Tapping on the edge of her seat. "Be my guest."

★ ★ ★

[A.N.]

[Happy Friday!] 

[We are very close to the chapters which I feel are very exciting as Harry and Astrid's relationship will actually have the chance to evolve. I definitely do not want to drag this out, even though I am a lover of a slow-burn, so we shall see what happens!] 

[I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Please don't forget to vote and comment :).]

[Have a great weekend!] 

[With love, B.]